Volunteer Charitable Expenses

You can probably deduct the cost of the meals, movie tickets, and etc that you provide to your Little Brother/Sister, and the mileage you incur, but not the cost of your own meals, tickets, etc. For further information, see page 5 of Pub. 526, Charitable Contributions, available online at:

Specifically, the following paragraph: "Underprivileged youths selected by charity. You can deduct reasonable unreimbursed out-of-pocket expenses you pay to allow underprivileged youths to attend athletic events, movies, or dinners. The youths must be selected by a charitable organization whose goal is to reduce juvenile delinquency. Your own similar expenses in accompanying the youths are not deductible."

Normally, contributions are deductible only if given to qualified organization (not persons). You can go to

and find the list of qualified charities. However, if you incur out-of-pocket expenses providing services to such an organization, such as travel, lodging and meals and mileage (at the $0.14 per mile plus parking fees and tolls, or actual auto/travel expenses-not including insurance and depreciation), then your out-of-pocket costs incurred while "away from home" for providing services to the organization (or on behalf of the organization) are deductible, provided there is no significant element of pleasure, vacation or recreation. Example: You volunteer on the Board, and there is a national convention, out of town, the organization wants you to attend and you do so at your own cost. In your case, however, a strict reading would seem disallow all of it, because you are not giving money or property to the organization, instead you're giving it to a person/client-so maybe, I guess, it might be "on behalf of the organization" and maybe deductible. Then there is the problem with the pleasure element-otherwise you wouldn't volunteer for it, right? Also, in other areas of the tax code, when they speak of "away from home" in context with travel, it means away from your "tax home" ... which is usually the entire metro area where you work (not necessarily where you live). Therefore, in those contexts, travel within that metro area is not "away from home." As a matter of practice, I, personally, would take the mileage and the out-of-pocket cost of the client's meal and recreation and forget about my meal and entertainment costs. I don't know if I would advise you to do that - you have to decide how agressive you want to be. It would be a pretty sick auditor who would not allow client costs and mileage. How about giving a cash donation to the organization and seek reimbursement from the organization for client costs and mileage expenses. The whole cash donation is then deductible. Starting this year you have to have a cash receipt for all donations.